Queen Margherita Pizza to get into the delivery business with Full Blooded Italian Pizza

West-end partisans of Queen Margherita Pizza have often lamented their trek across Queen Street for a taste of their favourite pie. In about a month, however, they’ll be able to get a Queen Margherita–style pizza delivered to their doorstep with the launch of sister restaurant Full Blooded Italian on Lake Shore Boulevard West.

We spoke with co-owner John Chetti, who told us the goal is to offer “the ultimate delivery pizza that we can possibly put forth.” While the original restaurant cooks its pies in a wood-burning oven, the thin, flash-baked crust wouldn’t hold up to delivery. Full Blooded Italian (FBI Pizza for short) will use high-heat electric ovens to create a similar texture in a more stable form. Pizzas come in two sizes: “Big” and “Bigger.” The choose-your-own-style menu offers familiar delivery toppings (pepperoni, mushrooms) as well as some premium options (like thin-sliced prosciutto di Parma), along with salads and sandwiches. The delivery range is yet to be determined, but Chetti’s hoping for a 10-kilometre radius.

Full Blooded Italian’s opening on the west side of town, at Lake Shore west of Park Lawn, constitutes something of an incursion on Pizzeria Libretto’s turf, according to the Globe and Mail(although the two are about eight kilometres apart). When asked about the supposed rivalry, Chetti laughed. “Look, we’re in competition because we do the same thing,” he said. Still, he couldn’t help but poke a little fun at Libretto’s claims to authenticity—particularly their touted certification from international pie police Verace Pizza Napoletana. “At the end of the day, one thing and one thing only matters: the pizza,” said Chetti. “At Queen Margherita, we’re all about authenticity. But that’s something we give ourselves, not something we let other people give us.” Meanwhile, Libretto is finalizing preparations on its Danforth location, with plans to open later this month.

Full Blooded Italian was initially slated to open in the summer, but issues with Toronto Hydro delayed renovation. The space is now largely completed, but the owners have pushed the opening off until December 1. “It’s an Italian superstition,” said Chetti. “November is the month of the dead.”